NEWS Ben Ikin puts his **** on the block

Big Pete said:
Exactly, he comes across as very wet behind the ears.

I'm not saying he's out of the running either. Maybe he's more professional away from the camera but I'm not exactly handing him the reigns over his persona on NRL 360.
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But he's been practicing his spreadsheets a lot.
 
At least he has identified the key issues the club is facing.

I mean, if a candidate comes in and starts blabbering about anything other than that then they can get fucked.

We are a football club. Fix the fucking football.
 
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vertigo said:
At least he has identified the key issues the club is facing.

I mean, if a candidate comes in and starts blabbering about anything other than that then they can get fucked.

We are a football club. Fix the fucking football.
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A dairy farmer with a ranch full of bulls has bigger problems to fix than worrying about marketing.

A football club that has a proud history that's suddenly the laughing stock of the game is the first priority of a new CEO for several months at least. The business needs to function sure, but the CEO doesn't man the cash register. That part will keep happening while the business focus and strategy is reshaped rapidly.

All boards hire in complimentary skills to fill gaps, I just hope the broncos realise they need a person to come in hard and shut this nonsense down. Have a strong passion for league and good connections to get us into local clubs where we have burned bridges.

I'd also like to see the current squad fed to the old boys this off season. Let the old boys show these kids what it's like to bleed maroon.

We need someone who gets this, not a politician.
 
Big Pete said:
I'm very mixed on Ikin.

On one hand, he was the first person to raise the Broncos roster management heading into the 2017 season and the impact that was going to have on the club. In that regard, he isn't some johnny come lately, he's just been banging the same drum now for four years, so at least he has his fingers on the pulse.

On the other, I thought some of his articles he penned during lockdown were very ordinary and while not disgraceful they didn't seem well thought out. Player welfare is extremely important and if he has a black and white view it's not going to make this a very inviting club.
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Yes, right now he's sitting in the stands with us, coming up with the kind of solutions that sound good to fans. It's easy to win fans over by feeding our own words back to us. To an extent Pies has been doing that. We say it on BHQ, three months later he does it.

What's a lot harder is steering a public corporation, that's answerable to shareholders and delivering the profits that justify their investments. As @Foordy keeps pointing out, that's the job of the CEO, not micromanaging the players.

Ben is speaking a great game right now, and thanks to his media training he's become confident in front of camera and can complete entire sentences with umming and ahhing, or relying on nervous placeholders like "sort of." It's easy to conflate this confidence with inspiration.

As for the spreadsheets, that's great but he might want to learn a few algorithms to plug into them. Any kid can sort a list.

I do like him, though. Even though he shitted me as a player.
 
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McHunt said:
Yes, right now he's sitting in the stands with us, coming up with the kind of solutions that sound good to fans. It's easy to win fans over by feeding our own words back to us. To an extent Pies has been doing that. We say it on BHQ, three months later he does it.

What's a lot harder is steering a public corporation, that's answerable to shareholders and delivering the profits that justify their investments. As @Foordy keeps pointing out, that's the job of the CEO, not micromanaging the players.

Ben is speaking a great game right now, and thanks to his media training he's become confident in front of camera and can complete entire sentences with umming and ahhing, or relying on nervous placeholders like "sort of." It's easy to conflate this confidence with inspiration.

As for the spreadsheets, that's great but he might want to learn a few algorithms to plug into them. Any kid can sort a list.

I do like him, though. Even though he shitted me as a player.
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Again from listening to him on podcasts, he was pretty big on the mantra of "players play, coaches coach and managers manage." I'd have some level of faith he'd be a decent head to have on the recruitment and retention committee - he has a good feel for value and also wouldn't hand out player options like tictacs - but would leave actually coaching the players to Kevvie. A CEO who can participate in the club culture, adding to it as needed, without seeking to take it over and host his own separate barbecues sounds like a massive step up from where we are now.
 
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Big Pete said:
Exactly, he comes across as very wet behind the ears.
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I don't get that. I mean, the guy isn't just a host on 360. He was the GM of commercial at the Titans as well as Sales and Marketing in the construction industry. So I'd say he's got a good business mind in between those ears.

Obviously, he's going to be behind the eight ball if other CEO's apply but what he lacks in CEO experience he makes up in football knowledge, which probably is the backbone of the club. Having an unsuccessful team on the field is going to hurt the club financially. Just like a CEO in any business, it's the support network around them that fills any gaps in experience the CEO may not have.
 
Even if you go only on his 360 experience (which I don't know why you would), whenever he speaks up it seems calculated and measured, he doesn't seem to fly off the handle and shout over the others like the 'journos' do. It show me he can keep calm under pressure and speak up when he needs to. He also isn't afraid to go against the grain and can explain why he would do what he says.

Again, he is also an old boy who is putting his hand up to get in there and help out while the chips aren't just down, they've been split and spread everywhere. He can help unite the club, he has a media presence and some 'friends' that he will be able to use when needed and he will come in with a certain level of respect. Others can handle the financial sides he might not be so good at.
 
I think the ONLY reason Ikin appears good for the role is because he has to be better than the current pot plants ruining the joint. I am not convinced by this gossip queen and his News Ltd company man credentials.
 
jarro65 said:
It would complete half of Ikins 'coaching/culture' plan for the club.

Now to find Kevvie a decent assistant coach [emoji848]
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I'd like to see an assistant team that includes Cameron Smith (obviously), and a few rotating guest star old boy coaches like Webke, Petero, Lote, Pearl, etc. It's time to Make the Broncos Great Again. And the way to do that is build that bridge to the past and pass the baton on to the new kids to do it their way.
 
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McHunt said:
I'd like to see an assistant team that includes Cameron Smith (obviously), and a few rotating guest star old boy coaches like Webke, Petero, Lote, Pearl, etc. It's time to Make the Broncos Great Again. And the way to do that is build that bridge to the past and pass the baton on to the new kids to do it their way.
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Trump might need a new job soon, Trump for CEO maybe?
 
007 said:
Trump might need a new job soon, Trump for CEO maybe?
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1562763427 Kevin Walters Getty 960x540
 
McHunt said:
I'd like to see an assistant team that includes Cameron Smith (obviously), and a few rotating guest star old boy coaches like Webke, Petero, Lote, Pearl, etc. It's time to Make the Broncos Great Again. And the way to do that is build that bridge to the past and pass the baton on to the new kids to do it their way.
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look i must admit that one of the genuine benefits of Walters coming in to coach is it may be the spark the club needs to repair burnt bridges with a heap of former legends, which has been one of the more upsetting and disturbing outcomes of the clubs current predicament...

I mean, if im a 16-17 year old reserve grader tryign to break thorugh at Brisbane and im surrounded by Webke, Petro, Renouf etc....what fantastic motivation and corporate knowledge they have to share...

The more i spend thinking about it, the more it becomes apparent its the only feasible option avaible for a whole hosts of reasons....
 
Dazza 92 said:
look i must admit that one of the genuine benefits of Walters coming in to coach is it may be the spark the club needs to repair burnt bridges with a heap of former legends, which has been one of the more upsetting and disturbing outcomes of the clubs current predicament...

I mean, if im a 16-17 year old reserve grader tryign to break thorugh at Brisbane and im surrounded by Webke, Petro, Renouf etc....what fantastic motivation and corporate knowledge they have to share...

The more i spend thinking about it, the more it becomes apparent its the only feasible option avaible for a whole hosts of reasons....
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Yes, this is why we were able to attract the class of players we had in the past. That said, we're not looking for clones of these players. We want the next generation to do it their way, but with the values that made the club great in the first place.
 
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